1. Field of Endeavor
This invention relates principally to mechanical sleep aids, specifically to a lightweight pouch secured to the body to alleviate snoring caused by poor breathing due to airway blockage. It acts to prevent sleeping on one's back where the worst snoring occurs due to soft tissues in the throat collapsing and blocking the airway. When one attempts to roll from a side to a back-reclining position while asleep, the device effectively resists the attempt thus avoiding airway blockage.
Those who snore loudly enough to annoy a sleeping partner or who use oral prostheses for correcting sleep apnea or who are unable to tolerate a Continuous Positive air pressure (C-Pap) breathing apparatus need a device that stays in position on the body and acts effectively when one attempts to roll toward a back-reclining position.
2. Description of Prior Art
Sleep clinics recommend an altered T-shirt to prevent sleeping on one's back and consequent airway blockage. It is to be worn overnight by sleep apnea patients. It has a vertical rear pocket encasing several tennis balls.
This and similar devices often do not achieve the desired objective. The T-shirt doesn't fit snugly enough to prevent the tennis balls from shifting out of position. A more serious disadvantage is that the tennis balls are not compressed until a back-reclining position is reached. Also, it may not provide sufficient resistance to discourage a sound sleeper from remaining on his/her back. There is then no assurance that one will fully reverse the rolling action.